Soldier&#39;s equipment and the like



E. B. ARCHIBALD.

SOLDIERS EQUIPMENT AND THE LIKE.

Patented Mar. 23, 1920.

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APPLICATION FILED F EB. 27, 1 9l9. 1,334,582.

E. B. ARCHIBALD. SOLDIER'S EQUIPMENT AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB- 27,1919.

Patented Mar. 23,1920;

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aka-cum:

EDWARD BLAKE ARGHIBALD, 0F TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA.

'SOLDIERS EQUIPMENT AND THE LIKE.

Specification 01' Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 23, 1920.

Application fi1ed February 27, 1919. Serial No. 279,565.

1 0 aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ED\VARD BLAKE Anonnsnro, Canadian Y. M. C. A. officer, honorary captain Canadian Army, of 273 tit. George street, Toronto, Canada, temporarily residing at First Avenue Hotel, .l-ligh Holborn, London, W. C. I., have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Soldiers Equipment and the like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to soldiers equip ment and the like.

In the usual form of equipment the pack is carried from shoulder-straps to which is also attached the cartridge belt and from the latter the water bottle, haversack, bayonet and trenching tool are suspended. During marching the various articles hai'iging around the body are apt to rub and they also cause inconvenience by coming into contact with the sides of trenches. With the usual type of equipment also, the whole weight is carried :l'rom the shoulders, and the pack is not accessible to the wearer unless the whole 0'[ the equipment is removed.

It is an object of the present invention to provide means whereby the weight of the equipment can, if desired, be carried from the head i on the principle of the tumpline. It is a further object of the present invention to provide equipment which is more compact and more accessible than that heretofore employed.

According to the present invention in a soldiers equipment of the kind described above there is combined with the shoulderstraps a head-band attached directly or indirectly to the shoulder-straps for the purpose of supporting the weight from the head, and so resting the shoulders for a period.

According to a modification oi' the present invention there is provided in a soldiers equipment of the kind described above a back-board of fiber, leather or other material to which the pack and other articles, such as the water bottle, mess tin and trenching tool are attached, said back-board being carried on the shoulder-straps with or without direct attachment to the head-band. Preferably the back-board is provided with hooks, such for example as spring clips or loops or rings, adapted to engage with rings or hooks on the back, so that the latter can be readily removed without removing the equipment.

Preferably also supportinomeans for the cartridge belt are provid ed comprising straps or the like carried from the ends of the head-band.

One form of equipment according to the present invention will now be described. with. reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows an equipment with headband and back-board but without the pack, water-bottle, mess tin, haversack or gas mask in position, and

Fig. 2 shows the back-board.

To the ends of the shoulder-straps A is attached a back-board B, preferably of thin fiber, for example three-thirtyseconds of an inch thick, and shaped to the back. The back-board should be varnished with a leather varnish. The back-boardis also attached by two adjustable straps C and metal D-rings D to a head-band E. The head band is conveniently of leather and is 15 inches long and varies in width from 3 inches in the center to 1 inch at each end. To these D-rings D are also attached small adjustable supporting straps F, secured at their other ends to the cartridge belt G which is fastened around the body in the usual way. The bayonet H and the handle for the trenching tool J are carried suspended from the cartridge belt G in the usual way. 7

At each top corner the back-board B is provided with a spring hook K upon which the pack is hung by means of rings or loops secured to it. The trenching tool L is car ried in a loop M secured on the backboard, and the water-bottle and mess tin are carried in straps N and 0 respectively secured one at each of the lower corners thereof. A strap P passes across the back-board and is secured at each. end to the cartridge belt G for the purpose of holding the back-board in place.

The back-board may also be provided with a pair of D-rings Q adapted to receive straps R by which a stretcher may be carried.

The shoulder-straps A. support the car tridge belt G in the usual manner.

The haversack is carried from the shoulder-straps by adjustable straps arranged to be of such length that the haversack is carthe haversack is fastened ried just above the pack. Two metal D-l'ings S are secured one to each of the shoulder straps at a convenient height, and to these the gas mask is-attached by spring clips, so that itis always in position ready for use, the case carrying it being held in place by a strap buttoned on to one of the tunic buttons.

With the equipment described above the various articles are all securely attached to the body so that there is no movement when marching. The water-bottle and mess tin are readily accessible, and if it is necessary at any time to remove the pack, it merely has to be lifted until the rings are removed from the spring clips on which it is carried. The haversack may be carried either at the back just above the pack, or for resting it may be hung in the front of the body without being removed.

The bottom of the haversack is preferably provided with straps or strings having spring clips at the ends which are attached to the D-rings T on the back-board, whereby securely against the body.

For carrying the pack, if the shoulders become tired, the head-band E may be placed in position over the head, whereby the weight is then distributed over the neck muscles and the shoulder muscles, the strap in no way interfering with the cap. By ad- As many changes could be made in the above construction, and many apparently widely different embodiments of my invention, within the scope of the claims, constructed without departing from the spirit or scope thereof, it is intended that all mat- I ter contained in the accompanying specification and drawings, shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

hat I claim as my invention is:

1. An equipment of the character described, comprisinga belt, a backboard, and a head band connected both to the backboard and to the belt.

2. The equipment according to claim 1, in which rings are associated with the opposite ends of the head band, and straps connecting said rings to the back board and belt.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of a witness.

EDWARD BLAKE ARCHIBALD.

WVitness RUSSEL S. SMART. 

